Mayor opposes Brockton power plant, cites scathing report

The report, commissioned by the mayor, says pollution from the proposed fossil fuel- and natural-gas-burning plant could have a serious effect on air quality and human health in the region.

Harrington said Friday he is “certainly not going to support” a project that could have a negative health impact for residents, and is urging state officials to reject the plant proposal.

But his opponent in the close mayoral race, Jass Stewart, called the comments a “political maneuver” to get votes, and accused the mayor of privately supporting the power plant.

“I'm hoping Brocktonians will be able to see through this ruse,” said Stewart, who has consistently opposed the power plant.

The plant, proposed for the south side of the city, would have a 250-foot smokestack and would primarily burn natural gas. The company, Brockton Clean Energy, hopes to open the plant in the Oak Hill Way Industrial Park by 2011.

A leading opponent of the plant said Friday he welcomed Harrington's new take on the issue, but criticized the mayor for not coming out against the plant sooner.

“It's great that he's come to an epiphany that the plant's no good, but he let this out of the cage into Brockton,” said city businessman Ed Byers.

“He wants to say his hands are clean. His hands aren't clean,” Byers said, referring to reports that Harrington had previously encouraged the power plant company to locate the project in Brockton.

Meeting records and interviews indicate that the mayor voted to support the plant as a board member of the 21st Century Corp., a city-funded development group, in April.

On Friday, Harrington re-asserted that he has said all along he wouldn't take a position on the plant until after a city-funded environmental review.

“My position was that I was going to get all the facts first,” he said.

The facts, according to the report from Wakefield-based environmental firm Metcalf & Eddy, are that the power plant won't be nearly as clean as its advocates claim. The report makes 31 detailed criticisms of the company's plans, including:

One of the company's key claims — that the plant will have a “limited” and “localized” air quality impact — is unfounded. It's likely Brockton and the region will suffer worse air, the report said, based on the effects that have resulted from existing sources of emissions Pollution from the plant could lead to negative health impacts for the region, a possibility the company has dismissed. The report urged the company to provide more proof that the plant wouldn't have negative health effects The plant would use nearly 2 million gallons of water per day that would have otherwise gone into local rivers. The report said the removal of this water from the rivers may “jeopardize downstream resources” by reducing the river flow by about 15 percent The report also criticized a number of other aspects of the plan, including its accounting for visual impacts, stormwater management and alleged lack of outreach to non-English speaking residents

A Brockton Clean Energy representative assailed the findings of the report Friday, and called the environmental firm behind it “irresponsible.”

“Brockton Clean Energy will use the cleanest and best state-of-the-art technology,” said spokeswoman Amy Lambiaso.

The company claims the plant would burn clean because it uses natural gas. The company also argues that the impact on the area would be minimal, and that it would generate at least $1.5 million annually for the city, along with dozens of jobs.

But many residents believe the power plant's noise, size and emissions would hurt their health and neighborhoods.

The plant has become a hot issue as the Nov. 6 election nears.

Stewart pledged Friday he will do “whatever it takes to stop this project,” while suggesting that Harrington actually wants the plant to come to Brockton, and will do nothing to fight it.

“He is speaking publicly one way,” Stewart said, “but he is pushing this privately.”

Harrington contended that he has already taken a strong stand on the project by sending the environmental report to state Energy and Environmental Secretary Ian Bowles, along with a letter expressing “grave concerns.”

“Because of the information we supplied, our position, which is not only from me, is that we hope (the state) won't allow this to go forward,” the mayor said.

The Enterprise reported last week that Harrington not only voted to support the power-plant proposal at the April 21 Century Corp. meeting, but made the motion to do so.

The group's president, Peter Neville, said the records that show Harrington made such a motion were inaccurate, and that in six months since the meeting, no one thought about correcting the minutes.